vanity publishing
Pay-to-print books
Vanity publishing is a publishing arrangement where authors pay to have their books printed, rather than being paid by the publisher.
Traditional publishers accept financial risk in exchange for rights; vanity presses simply provide printing services for a fee.
The term carries a dismissive connotation—implying the author's desire to see their name in print outweighs realistic assessment of the work's commercial viability.
Also called vanity press.
- pay to playFee required for participation
- pamphleteeringDistributing short printed arguments
- zinesAmateur self-published booklets
- samizdatClandestine dissident publishing
- print-on-demandProduction upon order placement
small press · mimeograph · chapbooks · custom printing · indie author · creative control · underground press · alternative press · limited editions · grassroots media · self-expression · crowdfunding platforms · bookbinding · fan fiction · personal narratives · fanzines · serialized fiction · ephemera
vanity, publishing, vain, vainly, vainness, publish, published, publisher, publishers